Opinion

WATERSHED EVENTS have shaped three decades of Asia. The future promises to be even more astounding . . .

OBAMA’s absence from Bali has been a gift to Xi Jinping as he embarks on a charm offensive with APEC Leaders in a bid to reshape China’s love-hate relationship with the region  . . .

SEOUL — Since the meltdown of their already highly-tarnished international standing, Kim Jong-eun and his advisors have been undertaking measures to normalise the DPRK's international position and to give the appearance, if not the reality, that North Korea is modernising under the wise leadership of its young Marshal.

THE intrigues of Presidential politics in Jakarta are in full swing as high-profile contenders compete for media and voter attention. Most intriguing of all is a suggestion that SBY’s wife could emerge from the shadows . . .

PENSION funds and sovereign reserves are being targetted to help meet Asia’s infrastructure needs as glo-bal liquidity continues to tighten in the wake of the 2008 economic meltdown . . .

CENTRAL BANKERS are preparing to welcome the RMB as an emerging major global reserve currency – alongside the US dollar and the Euro. Fluctuations in the Yuan are already influencing central bank policies in Asia . . . 

DISENCHANTMENT with ASEAN could see Indonesia adopt a more vocal stance on the global stage . . . 

WITH rising purchasing power,  Chinese consumers are looking outside China for safer food - and distorting markets in the process. Milk formula for infants is just one example . . .

IF Arctic ice continues to melt, allowing global shippers to build an alternative shipping route across the top of the world, Singapore – which already faces the potential threat of a new deep-sea port in Burma – may find its historical role as a world maritime entrepot dwindling . . .

CAN a Brazilian ‘honest broker’ break the gridlock to bring new relevance to the World Trade Organisation? The global trade umpire seems currently adrift in a sea of regional and bilateral trade agreements . . .